That brings this idea to the table: what if Apple actually designed a 50mm f/1.4 lens? Would you buy it? How would it look (probably like a Zeiss)?
It would certainly not look like a Zeiss. In fact in many ways Apple is the antithesis of Zeiss.
Zeiss lenses have, uniquely among modern lenses, depth of field markers for many apertures. They are manual focus only. Many of their lenses also have aperture rings. They are designed for technical or serious photographers.
Apple's lens would not have any buttons or focus ring. There would be no way to manually focus the lens. You would have to autofocus the lens and accept the choice that the camera made for you. The body would be machined entirely from a single cylinder of white plastic. The focus distance indicator would not have numbers (english and metric) like Zeiss lenses. Numbers are too technical for the average photographer, and so is deciphering between english and metric. It would have a stylized icon of a flower at the near focus stop because that's where you focus when shooting macro. A person's head in the midrange because that's for portraits, and the infinity focus stop would be a mountain because that's what you use for landscapes. This indicator would actually be a touchscreen LCD display so that you could not see it in the sunlight nor use it with gloves, and there would be a sensor to automatically regulate the brightness in dim or dark conditions.
All the settings like aperture and focus would be automatically decided for you by the camera. It would come in glossy white, not have any weather sealing (note: Zeiss lenses actually do not have any weather sealing) and with no hood because lens hoods are too serious for the average photographer. It would also have no filter thread because that is also too serious and too fiddly for the average photographer. However, the lens would have a built-in protective pane of thin, impact resistant oleophobic gorilla glass. Instead, filter effects will be applied using 3rd party software apps you download into the lens from the App store. These apps would be transferred to the lens via wifi connection. There would be a few extra contacts on the lens mount that would be used to charge the internal, non user-replaceable battery by setting it in the provided charging cradle which you connect to your Mac. You choose which "software filter" to apply via a simplified ipod nano-like UI that is integrated into the focus distance display. Except when you're wearing gloves because it's touch-screen only. Or, you would be able to download an app for your iPhone that would allow you to set the software filters via bluetooth connection.
A cottage industry of manufacturers would spring up making convoluted and overpriced solutions to mount lens hoods and filters onto the Apple lens. Also a plethora of large, brightly colored, oversized and overprotective cases will crop up to protect the apple lens. These may or may not severely hamper what usability the lens does have, but will still prove popular because of the ease by which the glossy finish could be scuffed up and attract fingerprints.
Ruahrc
